


How Do I Get To Heaven? (Without Losing A Piece Of Me)

by Maknaeholic



Category: Winner (Band)
Genre: Blood Play, M/M, Murder, Psychological Trauma, Stigmas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2018-08-23 02:24:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8310136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maknaeholic/pseuds/Maknaeholic
Summary: JinWoo was so close to hell he couldn't see that he was heaven itself for TaeHyun.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I had so many ideas and plots going round and round in my head, I wanted to be able to use what the person asked (and wanted) without losing options for a few twists of mine. This went...in very different directions (including the long lenght it reached) than what I initially intended so I really hope what I was able to write is of everyone’s liking.
> 
> Oh, yes, I did my worst too!
> 
> I also feel like I need to leave an apology if this disappoints the person who left the prompt, I tried my best so I'm sorry if this wasn't good enough for you.
> 
> My prompt was #10. It's based on Hotel California by The Eagles and I own no rights to the song whatsoever.
> 
> Just for safety, I repeat the warning of blood play, stigmas, murder, violent acts, dub-con, slight psychological trauma and a dark theme in general (it doesn't directly involve mental health issues but I want you to be aware of it).

_“_

_“My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim,_

_I had to stop for the night.”_

**October, 2006.**

A terrible idea. Leaving the island on the last ferry after a fight with his father, yet again, because of his disapproval of his choices for his own future. He knew becoming an idol wouldn’t be easy but it would prove that even people like him could achieve so much more than just be the son of a fisherman in an island where nothing ever happened except for the inevitable death.

 

He was able to recall the disappointed face of his father on every stage of his life, there was always something wrong with him, from his pretty face to his fragile body, maybe he was just an eternal reminder of his gone mother, so he was a failure in being what his father hoped him to be but, even with all the tears and scars, he wasn’t sorry.

 

Kim JinWoo was meant for so much more. So much more. Even when he had nothing.

 

Still, it was a terrible idea to just run away like that, with close to no money and no transportation to get to the city of dreams, where anyone could be what they wanted, Seoul. He had no option but to rent a car (there went half of the money he had) and he drove away in the middle of the night.

 

He lost count of how far he had been driving, though the pinkish and orange tints of the first rays of sunlight were some kind of indicator, until he found himself pulling over towards a small hotel, or was it a motel? He was pretty sure it wasn’t there before but he was also very sleepy so he might have had overlooked it. He thought it was too convenient for the place to be there but he didn’t have the energy in him to question it further, mostly because he was just exhausted. He couldn’t even catch the name of the hotel, or if there were any cars, it was as if he was being pulled into it.

 

**October, 2016.**

Being an underground musician for over three years, TaeHyun had the last bit of hope left for this last journey. He was giving everything (which wasn’t much, honestly) on this. He even had to hitchhike his way back to the city which wasn’t exactly the best idea because, apparently just when they were half way there, the driver decided to take a “shortcut” to the next town that ended up with both of them staring at car motor spitting smoke and weird liquids in the middle of nowhere with dunes all around.

 

Nam TaeHyun was quite literally regretting his life choices. They had no water, no food and basically no money so he knew he had fucked up. His last chance to make something of his life, to audition in any famous company, to get others to listen to his music and see his art was going to die along with him somewhere in South Korea, between a broken pickup truck and a…hotel? He was pretty sure the place wasn’t there just now but he was just so tired and frustrated that perhaps neither of them noticed.

 

“Hey, want to check that place out? Maybe we can get some help there,” he pointed at the hotel’s sign that had big, red neon letters that spelled: “Arrebol”. What language was that? English? French? The driver looked up and made the same surprised expression, “I know, right?” the singer was amused as he grabbed his guitar case from the back of the truck.

 

“How long…?” the kind, short by his side, middle-aged man that accepted him on the back of his truck cut off his question to shake his head as he fixed his cap, “Yes, kid, let’s go,” he patted his shoulder and they walked in its direction.

 

TaeHyun’s eyes went wide as soon as they crossed the doorway. Behind the front desk, there was an ethereal boy, all blonde hair and short height, with a pair of stunning doe-eyes with a blinding smile that made him stop mid-step. He couldn’t read his name tag from that distance but he was sure it was as beautiful as his whole self. He completely forgot why he was there. Where was he again?

 

It was then that he finally took the time to look around, the place seemed old but in a good shape with a classy, 70’s American style. The beige wallpaper along with the big columns and a fountain in the middle of the entrance patio made you feel like you were far away from Korea. A sudden chill ran down his spine the moment he looked up at the windows from a room on the second floor, he could swear he saw a tall figure closing down the blinds in one of them. There was something off about the place, no matter how hot the front desk assistant was.

 

“Kid, you coming?” he blinked at him before he nodded, jogging up to the desk next to him, “Good afternoon, our car had an accident…and we were wondering if you could help us,” the boy smiled but TaeHyun was sure he saw a flash of something alike to fear in his big, pretty eyes.

 

“Oh, sure, sir, would you mind waiting a second?” he nicely asked before he picked up the phone sitting by his side, pressing it to his ear as he raised his index finger in the air, “Uh, Mino-ah? I could use your help here. Yeah, thanks.”

 

“So…?” TaeHyun finally recovered his voice, “Will you be able to help us?”

 

“Yes,” he placed the phone down, “my co-worker will be here in a second and he’ll accompany you to see if he can help you fix it.”

 

“We could bring the car here…”

 

“No,” the tone, although it kept his kindness, sounded more like an order, “it’s better that you don’t get any further away from your way.”

 

“Yo, Jinu-ah, what is—?” he stopped mid-step, shifting his gaze between the three standing there, “Good afternoon,” he bowed slightly. The man in front of them was taller than the assistant, all tan skin and lean build, and TaeHyun wondered if every worker in that hotel was supposed to be hot, was it some kind of love hotel? The façade didn’t give that idea but who knew, he just wanted to get out of it as soon as he could so he could get back on the road, “Good afternoon, what’s the matter?” he turned to the blonde boy before they exchanged stares in what looked like an silent argument.

 

“Our car, it broke and we were wondering if you could give us some help with it, it’s still a long way to Seoul,” TaeHyun explained with the hope of getting them to get to it faster but the new worker searched for something in the upper part of the hotel, “please.”

 

“Okay. Hey, kid? Wait here, I’ll come get you as soon the truck’s working, alright?” the driver patted his shoulder once again.

 

“What? Why? No, I’ll go too.”

 

“It’s okay, kid, I can do it, I swear,” TaeHyun’s eyebrows raised in an inverted “V” completely incredulous, was the guy actually worrying about his masculinity at the moment? He was about to lose his temper when a soft hand touched his shoulder, he grunted but still pulled the sides of his mouth up in a fake smile.

 

“You can go order something in the restaurant meanwhile, if you’d like,” the guy named Mino suggested with one arm extended towards a long hallway in which you could see the huge entrance to a very elegant-looking part of the hotel where big tables were covered by long, white, tablecloths and huge chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, even the wallpaper had a nice pattern of black flowers mixed with mandalas. TaeHyun blinked, mesmerized by every little detail, almost as if the cutlery was softly whispering his name, “wanna go?”

 

“No,” TaeHyun turned around to face the pretty, “I’ll just wait here. It shouldn’t take too long,” he was still fighting off his curiosity to go further into the place.

 

“Yeah, okay.”

TaeHyun took a seat in the couches close to the front desk, taking out his cellphone to check the time and frowned as he noticed the lack of signal, the last message he had was from his mother asking when he would be back and telling him that his little brother missed him; he smiled as he typed out the answer and pressed send so it will go through once he got connected again. It was then that his eyes strayed away from the screen up to where the boy was organizing some papers, long blonde locks framing his face, until he felt the stare upon him that made him look up, batting his eyelashes (maybe unconsciously) and smiling sweetly (perhaps kindly) at him as their gazes met.

 

“Do you need anything? I could bring you some water, you must be thirsty,” the blonde spoke while cutely tilting his head to the side.

 

“Eh, sure, please, thanks,” TaeHyun said those three well-mannered words way too fast for his normal behavior and for a second he thought that his mother would’ve killed to see him acting so polite. The pretty blonde nodded and turned around to walk down the corridor that led to the restaurant, that’s when he saw another tall boy moving around the tables with a black chef jacket, fixing the glasses on the tables, folding napkins before he stopped to greet the incomer. He was quick to nod and head to where, he supposed, was the kitchen to get him the water. He slowly stood up from the couch, taking the opportunity to inspect the front desk, finally finding out that pretty boy had a name: “K. JinWoo”.

 

“Hey,” TaeHyun jumped up, turning around to face him, rather fast, “were you looking for something?”

 

“No, no, I was just…thanks,” he quickly grabbed the glass of water and brought it to his lips, he was about to take the first sip of the crystal clear liquid when he heard a car driving away, the noise of glass shattering was followed by a pair of running footsteps towards the parking lot where the bell boy was coming in lazy strides back to the hotel, “what the fuck?!” the tanned dude raised his hands while TaeHyun grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

 

“He told me to tell you that he’ll come back to get you after he fills up the gas in the nearest station,” Mino freed himself and pulled TaeHyun along, “besides now you can apologize for the mess,” he pointed at the floor where the desk boy was now on his knees, picking up the sharp pieces of glass.

 

“Let me help you,” the musician muttered once he was knelt by his side, gathering up the small splinters of broken glass with the side of his hands like a broom until he reached the place where JinWoo was pilling up the big ones inside what was left of the glass’s bottom.

 

“Oh, no, no, it’s okay! You don’t have to—!” JinWoo stumbled upon his words as he tried to keep TaeHyun’s hands away from the shards which led to him cutting himself on a big piece they had been struggling to pick, “Ah, it’s okay, don’t worry. Mino-yah—.”

 

“Mino-ah, please, take our new guest for a free meal with SeungYoon-ah,” TaeHyun was sure he saw a flash of fear as JinWoo stared at his bloody palm before he pulled the corners of his beautiful lips into a breathtaking smile that he directed at the owner of the new calm, controlled voice, “JinWoo, please, be more careful next time, we don’t want you or the guest getting hurt,” a tall man in a suit gracefully wrapped his fingers around JinWoo’s wrist to gently get him on his feet.

 

“Who are you?” JinWoo raised his eyebrows at how fast TaeHyun’s annoyed tone changed his demeanor completely, his well-mannered façade shattered almost as fast as the glass on the ground, and he still had to get up from his position on his own, “I’m not hungry but thank you.”

 

“I’m Lee SeungHoon, the owner and manager of this place,” SeungHoon leaned a bit towards TaeHyun, in some kind of way to show how he was a few inches taller, before he extended his free hand as he was still holding onto JinWoo’s injured one, “Oh, I heard you had a rough day, why don’t we offer you a free night with all services included while you wait? Would that be alright?”

 

“I guess,” Mino caressed his face like he had a beard whereas he pressed his mouth in different angles, holding back his laughter at TaeHyun’s tone while the other fixed his guitar case, blatantly ignoring the outstretched hand, “so…where’s my suite?”

 

**October, 2010.**

"Cleaning day, guys!" JinWoo cheered at 7:00am walking into Mino's room, going straight for the curtains to pull them open to let the rays of the morning sun to burn right into his eyes, "Wake up!"

 

Mino groaned as he covered his eyes with his forearm, wrinkles appearing on his forehead, before he turned his back to the window, "Fuck off, Jinu hyung," he cursed under his breath.

 

"I heard that," the older piped up from the door, "get dressed and bring Yoonnie along, please, we have lots to do," he spun around and left the room whistling.

 

"Shit," SeungYoon's head popped out from under the covers, "how is he so happy?" he complained as he stretched out, rolling to the edge off the bed to grab Mino's shirt.

 

"It's just his way of coping," the hotel’s handy boy stood up after him, “it’s not like we have any choice,” SeungYoon looked at him from over his shoulder and left.

 

The three workers met up at the kitchen once they were all dressed up for their morning activities after a busy night. SeungYoon walked towards the kitchen closet to take out his jacket and hat, tying it up as he looked for the ingredients to make their breakfast, “You feel like having something?” he asked with a pan in his hand but Mino just shrugged so he turned to JinWoo who only smiled sweetly at him, almost like a puppy, looking at the rice cooker.

 

“Rice with fried eggs it is,” Mino grumbled but SeungYoon softly hit his head with the pan to keep him quiet. The cook worked in between short chats with the two, waiting for the rice to be done as he fried the eggs, “how was last night?” he asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible,  when he served their plates.

 

“Well, you know how SeungHoon can get,” JinWoo said with a tight smile, both of his co-workers and friends only nodded in understanding.

 

After the three finally finished their food, basically Mino had to wait for the other two, SeungYoon picked up their dishes along with the ones from the night before to wash them up, “You need help there, JinWoo-ah?”

 

“No, I think Mino and I’ll be fine,” the oldest there assured, “take this,” he handled a bucket full of cleaning supplies to Mino.

 

They walked side by side down the long hallways, old wallpaper shredding at some corners, in silence before they finally stopped in front of their honeymoon suite. JinWoo pulled out the keychain to look for the right key while Mino cleaned the stains that were already on the carpet under the door, the two boys pushed the door open when the oldest finally found the right one and sighed at the same time before Mino flickered the light switch on. The room was wrecked; the furniture was thrown all over the place, the decorations were mostly broken and the bathroom was a mess all over, Mino frowned as he collected the sheets that were on different parts of the room, “I’ll take the room,” JinWoo whined but nodded anyways.

 

JinWoo grimaced since he accidentally stepped on a puddle, he took a step back but didn’t realize that there was another one right behind him, so when he moved his weight back he fell into the bathtub filled up almost completely with a mixture of liquids, “Mino!” he howled after he tried to push himself out in vain.

 

He whipped out his hands, splashing the walls around, trying to keep his mind focused on not throwing up until Mino finally popped his head through the door, “Jesus Christ, Jinu hyung, what the fuck?” he quickly yet carefully made his way to where JinWoo was with his legs hanging out while he kept his head out holding one of the faucets to grab his forearms and pull him out.

 

“I fucking hate blood,” Mino handed him a towel with which he cleaned his face, “can’t ever wash the damn thing out.” he squeezed his hair with the towel to dry it out, noticing on the mirror how he would be having temporally red hair until he got a shower, “Let’s go, we have to finish this before SeungHoon asks.”

 

**October, 2016.**

Mino pushed the door open, “Here we are,” he stretched out his arms as he stepped in.

 

“Is _this_ what you call a suite?” JinWoo covered his mouth to hide his smile while TaeHyun placed down his guitar and the small bag with his phone charger, lyrics book and other small but necessary stuff, “this sucks.”

 

“Sorry, but you are spending a free night though.” 

 

TaeHyun watched the pretty boy from over his shoulder, “Well, that old man should be back soon too.”

 

Mino and JinWoo shared a look but both tried their best at giving TaeHyun a reassuring smile, “You sure you don’t want anything to eat?”

 

“No, I’ll be fine,” the musician swore the front desk boy almost pouted so he added, “thanks,” he mumbled before he shifted his gaze away to avoid staring at the bright smile that appeared on JinWoo’s face.

 

“We’ll let you settle down,” the handy boy turned to leave and waited for JinWoo to head out first, “if you need anything, press that button,” he pointed at a small white button beside the bed that would ring a bell in the lobby.

 

“Yeah, thanks.” JinWoo did a small vow and silently left the room, Mino nodded his way and was about to follow the older when a hand grabbed his wrist, “Hey, uhm…I kind of need some spare clothes? My bag was in the truck.”

 

“Oh, I’ll check in the lost and found to see if I can find you something,” he patted TaeHyun’s shoulder then closed the door behind him.

 

TaeHyun dropped his shoulders as soon as he was left alone, he liked being alone and he almost never felt lonely but for some reason, that room made him feel lonely. His single bedroom wasn’t even that big, it had a small bathroom and a tiny closet, with a single bed, a nightstand and an old unplugged TV so he peeked out the small window right over the bed to see a big back pool with benches and palm trees. He took out his phone, pacing around trying to see if he could grab any signal or WIFI when a chill ran down his spine and he felt frozen in place as he held the device over his head towards the ceiling, like someone was burning holes into his back, but he just shook his head and the feeling was gone.

 

“Stupid thing.” he shook the phone but jumped up because a knock on the door took him by surprise, “Yes?” his eyes went wide as a pink onesie was handed to him.

 

“I would say I’m sorry but I’m honestly not,” the tanned man smiled smugly, “c’mon, let’s eat something before you go to bed,” TaeHyun couldn’t deny food anymore so he threw the pajamas and walked after Mino.

 

TaeHyun followed Mino because he hadn’t stopped to think if there were other people in the hotel or not because, although everything was set as if they had a full house, he hadn’t seen anyone else there besides the staff members. He looked into one of the windows of the rooms on the second floor and he swore he saw a shadow chasing another one down one of them, he was sure, he stopped in his tracks when a third shadow jumped down the balcony facing the parking lot.

 

He ran up to Mino, desperately tugging him back by the collar, “Mino-sshi, there...there was someone!”only to end up signaling in silence to a very empty room.

 

“Did you see a ghost, mmh?” he mocked the taller and just kept walking so TaeHyun rushed to his side, still a bit shaken up because he knew what he saw, there was something off about that place. Mino led him to the restaurant where SeungYoon was setting the table for one, “That looks delicious,” the cook smiled brightly when his eyes met with Mino’s and TaeHyun felt a strange sympathy for the obvious couple, forgetting for a second about the scary incident.

 

“Oh, how did you find your room?” JinWoo’s voice cut his train of thought, “I’m sorry that you got stuck in here with us.”

 

TaeHyun shrugged, “It’s okay, really, it could be much worse, and I could be dying alone outside, right?” the three laughed so falsely it almost physically hurt the musician to hear.

 

Dinner was a simple kimchi stew and a glass of water, although it was something so common, the noodles were pretty tasty compared to his usual instant ones. He jumped in his seat when his phone vibrated from an incoming call, he quickly pulled it out of his jeans and answered right away, “Hello?” relief washed over him as he heard his mother’s voice on the other side of the line complaining for not calling before, “Oh, mom, it’s okay…I’m okay, I might be…away for a bit longer but I’ll be back soon, I promise.” TaeHyun spent almost two hours trying to explain to his mother (and little brother since he was on speaker) how he ended up in the hotel for the night, “I have to go, I’ll try to get some rest and see if I can find a way to get back on the road tomorrow. I’ll keep you updated, good night. Love you,” he ended the call with a deep sigh, he missed his home but he knew there were some things he had to do for himself.

 

SeungYoon walked up to him, “You done?” he asked as he picked up his empty bowl, “You should get some rest, it’s late,” TaeHyun frowned a bit before he checked his phone, it was barely past 11pm.

 

“Yeah, I think I’ll go to my room,” he slowly stood up, bowing slightly to the cook, “thanks for the meal, I liked it a lot,” SeungYoon kindly shook his head, reassuring him how he much he liked to cook so he was happy someone appreciated his skills.

 

TaeHyun walked back to his room on his own afterwards, his phone in hand while he checked the news on the idols he followed, until he made a sudden stop because the signal was off again. There was again, the feeling of being watched, he wanted to turn around but decided against it and kept walking until he reached his door. Once he was inside the room again, the sensation was gone just like his lack of signal, he deadpanned as he stared at the onesie on the bed, it wasn’t like he had much of a choice so he changed into it; he went to the bathroom to check himself out, confirming his fear: he looked ridiculous. TaeHyun deeply sighed before he went straight to the bed, picking his guitar on the way to start working on his new composition.

 

A couple of hours passed because he roughly finished the notes on his lyrics book when a noise caught his attention, he started looking around, it was rather annoying, quiet but constant, like a dripping faucet. TaeHyun slowly rose from the bed, bare feet taking him to the bathroom to check if the noise was coming from there but he found nothing, almost believing he was imagining it, which was when he abruptly stopped by the door as he watched the source. Red. It was all red. _Blood_ red. The corner right beside the closet had a huge fresh stain that saturated the horrible wallpaper so it was leaking all the way to the floor, creating a pool there. So much crimson it had TaeHyun running out of the room towards the lobby and right into SeungHoon.

 

“Oh, my God, are you okay?” the owner of the place acted too conceited for TaeHyun’s upset mood, “what’s wrong?”

 

“The room, in the room, there was…blood,” SeungHoon gasped, shaking his head and the musician was sure he could see the mock in his features, “you have to do something!”

 

“We’ll do it, right away,” he took a dangerous step closer to TaeHyun just as a sweet voice made them turn.

 

“Hey, what are you doing up so late?” JinWoo jogged up to where the two of them where in the middle of the hallway, “Is there something wrong?”

 

“Blood,” the desk boy showed a more honest reaction to the word, “you have to see it,” he grabbed JinWoo’s wrist without permission to pull him along, well aware of SeungHoon’s constant presence behind them.

 

TaeHyun pushed the door open, suddenly stopping in front of now clear pool, growing bigger from the dripping ceiling, the liquid being obviously water. JinWoo noticed as he tried to explain himself, his own words getting stuck because he knew what he saw, so he just placed a hand on his shoulder, “I’ll call Mino to fix the leak,” the blonde took TaeHyun out, who was still shocked from his mistake to realize how fast Mino was next to the door.

 

The pool was huge and deep, under water lights illuminated the bottom and the shore, the crickets sang all around while JinWoo walked them to sit on one of the benches, “I’m sorry,” TaeHyun mumbled under his breath, hands messing up his hair, “I swear, I didn’t mean to start a drama.”

 

“No, it’s okay,” it was then that JinWoo finally looked at what he was wearing, “Oh, God, tell me you didn’t get that from the lost and found,” he cringed.

 

“Mino-sshi gave it to me, I know,” TaeHyun rolled his eyes, “it sucks,” JinWoo giggled and the mere sound of it made the younger feel much better.

 

“So…Seoul, huh? What’s your business there?”

 

“…I want to become a singer,” JinWoo’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, “or at least, that’s what I thought I could become,” his eyes casted down.

 

“Hey, it’s not an easy path, you shouldn’t just give up because that’s when you’re close to succeed,” JinWoo shrugged, “there was a time where I also wanted to be an idol, guess now it’s a bit late for me but not for you.”

 

TaeHyun looked up to find JinWoo staring at the water, his blonde hair moved with the light breeze while his expression was sad, TaeHyun unconsciously reached out to touch his flawless milky white skin, somehow JinWoo became even more beautiful the more he admired him. The desk boy blinked once then turned back to him, long eyelashes shyly fluttering at him, and a blush spreading through his cheeks triggered a heavy need inside him for JinWoo. The singer straightened on his seat after he felt that chill stronger than before burning into his spine, almost making him tremble, “Why are you here then? It’s never too late…if you really want.”

 

“I like it here, I guess, this is my home now,” JinWoo’s smile was true yet blue but his eyes shifted around as if he was looking for something until he stood up, “I’m hungry, would you mind coming with me? Either way I think Mino should be done fixing your room,” he spoke rather fast so TaeHyun had a hard time picking up his words at first.

 

“No, it’s okay, I could use a midnight snack,” TaeHyun also got up, a warm sensation made him smile softly at their obvious height difference, JinWoo was tiny next to him.

 

JinWoo kept a certain distance from TaeHyun as they made their way to the kitchen, the mood was very different from the one they had moments ago (would it be okay if he labelled it as intimate?) and he wanted to blame it on that feeling of being watched, in every step they took until they reached the back door of the kitchen, in which SeungYoon was making something for himself, “You guys, what are you doing here?” he swept TaeHyun with one look, “And what the fuck is that?”

 

“Don’t say a word,” TaeHyun threatened with a pointing finger, “I know.”

 

“What you doing, Yoonnie?” JinWoo’s behavior changed at the same time the chill disappeared, he skipped towards the cook who was boiling something that he smelled, “Can I have some?”

 

“No, this is for Mino and I, hyung,” SeungYoon complained although he held a small grin, “c’mon, hyung! I always cook you the things you want,” he hip-pushed JinWoo a bit too hard since he lost his balance and had to grab TaeHyun’s shoulder for support.

 

“It’s okay, I’ll just eat some of the leftovers,” the pretty blonde pouted, giving TaeHyun a hard time keeping his pulse in check, before he opened the fridge to take out a small bowl filled with cooked rice, “hey, you knew that TaeHyun here is a singer?” he gave TaeHyun an amused smile.

 

“Oh, really?” SeungYoon’s voice ended up in a high pitch with an excited expression, “Sing something for us!” he requested as he waved the spoon he was using to mix the soup.

 

“U-Uh, I’m not so sure,” he awkwardly played with a napkin, avoiding the stares.

 

“Oh, please! Please!” both of the boys insisted in unison just as Mino entered the kitchen, tired and wet, only to laugh at his friends’ antics.

 

“What are you doing? Leave our guest alone,” the handy boy spoke calmly, his hand finding SeungYoon’s in a second, “the suite upstairs had a leak, I’m sorry, everything’s fixed now.”

 

“Oh, great, thanks,” TaeHyun had a flash of the red liquid going down the wall, it felt so vivid, so real, he shook his head in an attempt to get rid of those images.

 

“TaeHyun-sshi, are you okay?” SeungYoon’s voice felt so far away but JinWoo’s hand on his forearm was what brought him back, “TaeHyun-sshi?”

 

“Yes! I’m okay, sorry, I’m just sleepy,” he laughed but his lungs were in a lot of pain for some reason, “I think…I’ll head back. Sorry, I’ll sing some other time.”

 

“I’ll walk you,” JinWoo left his half eaten spoon on the counter, “it’s my job,” with that said, he opened the door for TaeHyun who just nodded, giving the other two a goodnight smile.

 

“I was wondering…am I the only one staying the night here?” TaeHyun eyed JinWoo out the corner of his eye, trying to sound as nonchalant as he could.

 

“Well, yes, we don’t have that much people coming now,” the blonde scratched the back of his head, “but I like it more when it’s quiet.”

 

“I see,” they arrived at TaeHyun’s room sooner than they expected because they felt so comfortable close to each other, “thanks for everything, JinWoo-sshi,” he bowed a bit.

 

“It’s okay, TaeHyun-sshi,” JinWoo’s eyes turned into crescent moons, “I’m glad to help,” he did a small bow too.

 

_“And I was thinking to myself:_

_This could be heaven or this could be Hell.”_

 

TaeHyun hesitated before he turned the knob, expecting the worst but only found his things just as he left them and the corner completely cleaned. JinWoo waved as the door closed and TaeHyun pressed his forehead on the wood, “The fuck is wrong with me? I see a fucking pretty face and I accept to spend a night in a weird ass motel,” he groaned to himself before he got out of that horrible onesie because he rather sleep half naked than with that thing on. He took off the covers of the bed to lay down, leaving the lights on since he couldn’t bring himself to care after the exhaustion took over his body.

 

He wasn’t a deep sleeper, usually a bit aware of his surroundings, more so if he was in a strange place but that night he knew he was in a dream yet he couldn’t bring himself to wake up. The dream consisted of several flashes of red, black, gold and silver; he could see a pair of luscious red lips among them, long black eyelashes, golden hands leaving a silver trace over the skin, the person looked so much like JinWoo, but he was not with him, it was another body. Slowly, the image became defined, JinWoo crawled on top of someone as he showed off the curves of his body; TaeHyun felt his own arousal growing while he watched the blonde’s perfect form move in languidly previous to straightening his back to show  that ivory canvas until red blotches broke all over the smooth skin. A pained moan escaped the plump lips, back arching into a perfect curve, after the blood flowed down, down, down…he looked up to find JinWoo’s eyes boring into his from over his marked shoulder. Just then a string wrapped around TaeHyun’s neck, exactly like the one that JinWoo had on his neck, pulling harder and harder each time until he couldn’t breathe anymore, he gasped and stretched his hands towards JinWoo whose hands were also tied down the moment he tried to reach to him.

 

“JinWoo—!” he screamed as he sat down on the bed, covered in sweat and one of his hands flew to his neck, checking the skin there before he finally noticed the sunlight slipping through the window, “…Ah,” he covered his face after he saw the tent in his underwear.

 

With dragged feet he reached the bathroom, hoping to get rid of the problem without having to actually acknowledge it. He never felt so ashamed of wanting someone as he was of wanting JinWoo, a pretty stranger, a pretty blonde stranger who was only kind to him because it was his job. He frowned while he recalled the look on JinWoo’s face when he spoke about his dreams, still under the icy water that was slowly calming down his body, he appeared to still long for those dreams he says to have left behind. TaeHyun grabbed a towel as he got out of the shower, luckily free from his inconvenience, and dried off his hair starting to pack the few belongings he had there.

 

TaeHyun reached the lobby with his guitar over his shoulder, hair still damp and heart still nervous at the thought of seeing JinWoo, but he found it empty so he tried in the restaurant and even the kitchen all of which were deserted. He looked around the pool but found no trace of the others, perhaps they were still asleep since it was very early in the morning because TaeHyun knew he had to leave if he wanted to get back to Seoul soon even if that meant hitchhike his way there again from zero so he went back to the lobby where he searched behind the counter for a notepad and a pen, which he found easily the moment before something called his attention: the guest list. He wondered if he should sign it or not, there were only a few names there, all of them having time of check-in but never seemed to have checked out of it, his finger travelled down when he came across a familiar name.

 

_Kim JinWoo._

Check In: _October 12, 2006._

Check out:

 

The space was blank.

 

_“Welcome to the Hotel California,_

_such a lovely place (such a lovely place),_

_such a lovely face.”_

 

**October, 2006.**

JinWoo finally stopped right in front of the hotel. He tried to rub the tiredness out of his eyes, failing miserably, before he slowly got off the car with wobbly legs after spending so much time in a sitting position. He walked up at the empty front desk in the big lobby at the right side of the patio which worked as the entrance and yawned while tapping the bell, waiting for someone to respond.

 

A man calmly made his way to where he was, giving him a polite smile before he bowed, "Welcome to Arrebol. How can I help you?"

 

"Oh, hello, well...I wanted to know how much is it for a night?" JinWoo tried to ignore the feeling of being pushed towards that man, "If you still have free rooms."

 

"Oh, yes. Of course," the manager, he assumed, scanned him from head to toe, "my name is SeungHoon, I own this place."

 

"Nice to meet you, I am JinWoo," he bowed, "you have a lovely hotel."

 

"Thank you. Well, come with me, I'll show you around, we have a few extra guests but there is plenty of room," SeungHoon led the way as he showed him every detail of the place, JinWoo couldn't help but notice that everything that he did seemed to be dripping with grace, "and what brought you here, JinWoo-sshi?"

 

"Well...I am on my way to Seoul," JinWoo spoke as they walked back from the pool towards the restaurant, "I just need to stay for a while to keep going."

 

"Seoul is kind of far from here, don't you think? What makes you want to live in the city?" SeungHoon stopped for a moment to greet the only other couple there before he went back to JinWoo's side.

 

"I wanted to become an idol," the black haired boy almost felt shy to confess his dream to a perfect stranger yet he felt unable to lie to him, "I want to matter, you know? I want to do something that matters."

 

"What would you give for that?" JinWoo frowned as he found that question out of place and threatening, like he was trying to find something from him, "I mean, because you are very attractive, you have a nice face, has anyone told you that?"

 

"I guess…? I think I’ll give anything," he felt a hot chill run down his spine, looking back at the couple that was heading to their room, a sense of insecurity was taking over him, "but yeah, I would just like to rest if it's possible..."

 

"Of course, just give me a moment and I'll be right with you," SeungHoon left him at the lobby, on one of the couches, "just...while I'm gone, could you please sign here?" the manager gave him the guest list which he didn't even bother to check before he wrote down his name and the date along with his signature.

 

He waited for a while until he got tired and he found himself walking up the stairs slowly calling for anyone there when he heard a scream coming from one of the upper floors. His blood ran cold but his feet were hot as they tried to get him out of there, he didn't want to look back because he felt a pair of eyes watching his every move. He was almost at the lobby when a tall figure gracefully appeared on his path, grabbing his wrist, "Stop," he ordered but JinWoo just freed himself from SeungHoon's grip, running straight for the parking. He crossed the lobby at full speed but as soon as he took the last step towards the car, pain shot through his system, ripping a shout from his throat. He fell on his knees from the unbearable pain that attacked every nerve on him, it only stopped when SeungHoon touched his hair, "You can't leave, Kim JinWoo...not until you pay for the night."

 

_“Plenty of room at the Hotel California,_

_any time of year (any time of year),_

_you can find it here.”_

 

**October, 2016.**

TaeHyun turned the pages, one after the other, watching the few names there until he found SeungYoon and Mino's written down four years after JinWoo’s on the same month, same year. What happened to all the other names if they were the only ones still in the hotel?

 

“TaeHyun-sshi?” JinWoo’s voice took him by surprise, the guest book falling from his hands with a loud thud, “What were you doing? You didn’t sign that, did you?!” the blonde rushed to his side and checked the book, feeling relieved after he saw that TaeHyun’s name wasn’t there.

 

“What is going on here, JinWoo-sshi?!” TaeHyun demanded, “Answer me!”

 

“It’s complicated, alright? Has anyone seen you?” the musician shook his head, “Have you _felt_ someone watching you?”

 

“No, JinWoo, the fuck is going on? You never left?” he tried to keep his tone as controlled as he could but he couldn’t help feeling kind of betrayed by those pretty eyes, he didn’t even care about honorifics anymore, “Why?”

 

“I can’t tell you, you have to go,” they were interrupted by a car honk, both turned to see the truck in which TaeHyun had come and the old man waving at him from the driver’s seat.

 

“Hey, kid! Sorry to have left you waiting, the gas station was farther away than I thought!” he yelled while he poked his head out the window, “C’mon!”

 

“Go, TaeHyun.” TaeHyun’s eyes shifted between the man and JinWoo, “Now.”

 

“Come with me to Seoul,” JinWoo took a step back, “what keeps you stuck in here?”

 

TaeHyun stared at JinWoo’s face, the expression he showed would be forever engraved on his mind, on his memory, it held such desire laced with grief like he was holding himself back from doing what he really wanted, “I can’t, I’m sorry,” his eyes fell to the ground and his feet moved back to give TaeHyun space to leave, “I don’t understand why you…would do that for me, you don’t know me.”

 

“JinWoo…” TaeHyun didn’t know what came over him when he walked up to JinWoo, only stopping once they were kissing-close, a few inches separating their lips which only reduced as he spoke, “can I kiss you?” JinWoo’s cheeks flared up, just like his own (even his ears got red), and his eyes widened.

 

“What?” he asked incredulously.

 

“Can I kiss you?” TaeHyun just wanted to get rid of that itch inside him, maybe if he could get a kiss from JinWoo, just one, he would be able to scratch it away, then he could leave and not spend the rest of his life thinking of those eyes, those lips and those legs. Those eyes that looked at him through thick eyelashes, those parted lips that he felt were calling for his and those short but pretty legs. He found his hands already on JinWoo’s hot cheeks before he started to lean in, he looked so scared, so fragile, TaeHyun wanted to own him so badly. His mouth hovered over the blonde’s when a hand on his shoulder pulled him back.

 

“Kid!” TaeHyun faced the old man who he forgot was waiting for him, “You want to go or not?”

 

A piercing scream cut through the air seconds earlier than TaeHyun could answer and both turned to find JinWoo on his knees, hands covering his neck and his eyes screwed shut, the image had TaeHyun running to him before he also felt frozen in place, the burning feeling in his back paralyzed him, and that was the moment when he saw SeungHoon walking towards them from the patio, almost lazily, “No!” JinWoo pleaded among the excruciating pain, “please! SeungHoon, please!”

 

“Oh my, my, why?” he stopped in front of JinWoo, hand tightly clasped on his jaw, “Why is it that you are begging for another man?”

 

“Let them go!” SeungHoon barely took notice of the other man there, he rolled his eyes like he was merely annoyed, “Hey!”

 

“Shut him up, would you, Haute?” TaeHyun’s eyebrows raised just as he finally understood the reason he couldn’t move, his eyes found JinWoo who was still on the ground, his eyes fixed on his hands that showed deep wounds, avoiding his gaze when SeungHoon’s shadow turned into a dark shaped hound with red eyes that growled at the old man, “Get rid of him,” SeungHoon brushed him away with his hand, the hellhound went straight for his neck.

 

“SeungHoon, please…” the blonde’s voice sounded completely broken at the sound of bones getting crushed and agonizing pleads died out, “just stop.”

 

“You were trying to leave me, JinWoo-ah,” SeungHoon pretended to be hurt, “for him?” he pointed at TaeHyun while he came closer to him, he grabbed a fistful of the younger’s hair and pulled him back, “You want him, don’t you? You want to fuck him.”

 

“No,” TaeHyun whispered with a venomous edge, “but I can see you have done it.”

 

“Oh, aren’t you a cocky bastard,” SeungHoon’s eyes fell on JinWoo and a wound on his neck opened, blood trailed down to his white shirt, “I could hurt you, I know, but I can see that hurting him would work better…if it wasn’t for the fact that he’s used to the pain.”

 

“Ah!” TaeHyun groaned after a blow to his throat left him spitting blood, falling forward hadn’t it been for the grip on his hair, the fingers pulled painfully at the strands as he coughed and his vision blacked out seconds after.

 

_“And in the master's chambers,_

_they gathered for the feast,_

_they stab it with their steely knives,_

_but they just can't kill the beast.”_

 

He felt heavy, so heavy, there was a smell which he found rather unpleasant mixed with one he tried so hard to remember, he wanted to open his eyes but it was so difficult. His neck hurt, his mouth hurt, breathing hurt. He moved his hands only to realize they were restrained over his head, something dripping from his wrists down to his forearms so he used all his strength to blink; the first flash that attacked his eyes was a bright black, the second one was red, then he was able to focus on what he had in front.

 

“JinWoo!” his raspy voice turned JinWoo’s hurt expression into a worried one, “The fuck?!” he was chained to a headboard and JinWoo was on all fours in front of him.

 

“I’m so sorry, TaeHyun…” the musician noted his lack of clothes because of the cold biting his skin.

 

“Are you, JinWoo-ah, really?” a shirtless SeungHoon strode towards them, his hand travelled from JinWoo’s calf up to his thigh, stopping on his backside, “I know how much you like it when it hurts,” he pulled the only thing covering his body, a satin sheet that fell on the group, pooling around his feet.

 

TaeHyun gasped as JinWoo’s stigmas kept saturating with blood, thick crimson liquid dampening the white sheets on the bed, he shivered when he saw the amount of blood on that bed, how much had JinWoo bled there? For how long? How many times had he and SeungHoon…? He wanted to throw up at the idea of JinWoo fucking with SeungHoon. JinWoo whimpered at the feeling of SeungHoon’s fingers collected body fluid before he pushed them against TaeHyun’s lips, “Is this what you want, TaeHyunnie? I’ve seen it, I know you desire fame but what about him? Would you say you want him as much?” the singer could taste the iron on his tongue.

 

“Don’t answer…” JinWoo muttered but didn’t dare to move as his hands were tied together with a rope just like his feet. SeungHoon glared at him from the side of his eyes making his cuts sting so he bit his lip.

 

“Come over him,” SeungHoon pulled JinWoo by a chain that hung from his neck, positionating him over TaeHyun’s body while his stigmas still bled over him. The blonde bit so hard on his lower lip to keep himself from crying as TaeHyun watched how he lost his life on top of him, he didn’t mind the bloody mess on his body at all, “suck him off.”

 

“No, don’t,” TaeHyun snarled, “don’t do it.”

 

“Fine, I’ll go first,” SeungHoon pushed JinWoo’s face flat onto the mattress next to TaeHyun’s hip, his ass sticking up, “enjoy it, boy,” he mocked TaeHyun with a smug smile.

SeungHoon dug his fingers into JinWoo’s pale skin and TaeHyun kept his eyes shut but he could feel the movement over him, he knew what was happening on top of him. SeungHoon was fucking JinWoo mercilessly, he could feel the liquid pooling on his stomach, he could hear the complains muffled by the pillows, he was dizzy between the smell of sex mixed with blood, sweat and tears and his own pain from where he was beaten. TaeHyun lost track of time, he thought back on the things he had done, he didn’t know if he was going to die there but he honestly didn’t mind if JinWoo would stop hurting. JinWoo was still a stranger yet he didn’t mind giving up for him, why? What was so special about Kim JinWoo? He remembered how his mother once told him the story about the red string of fate that tied you to the person you belonged with…he used to laugh at it but perhaps JinWoo was his other end?

 

TaeHyun suddenly recalled his dream, the string that JinWoo and he shared connected their necks, pulling so hard on both ends that it became impossible to breathe. Was that some kind of sign?

 

He slowly opened his eyes to find JinWoo’s face in front of his, flustered with frustration and shame, and he still thought of him as _flawless_. JinWoo was selfless. The opposite of his spoiled, selfish person, so no matter what he had done or what was done to him, he would always be perfect, “Do you still want him now, TaeHyunnie?” SeungHoon’s snarky remark cut his train of thought, “Is he still as pretty?” he licked the curve of JinWoo’s neck shamelessly.

 

“He’ll always be beautiful,” JinWoo’s gaze watered, he looked like shit, he felt like shit, he was on the verge of passing out but TaeHyun’s voice kept him sane, “If he does what you tell him, would you let him go?”

 

“Mmh, let’s make a deal, you prove to me that you still want him even after what I’ve done to him,” SeungHoon scraped the back of JinWoo’s ear, “and I’ll think about it.”

 

“No, TaeHyun, stop!” SeungHoon’s hand covered his mouth, fingers pressing down on his cheek, silencing him.

 

“Okay,” JinWoo cried out, desperately shaking his head, but TaeHyun just calmly shushed him, “JinWoo, would you suck me?”

 

SeungHoon let go of his face, allowing him to speak, “…Yes,” the owner of the hotel squinted his eyes, unsure, but moved back to sit on a couch across from the bed.

 

JinWoo leaned down until he was close to TaeHyun’s flaccid dick, he blinked up one last time prior to engulfing it. TaeHyun clenched his teeth, he didn’t want to make JinWoo feel worse by moaning out because his mouth felt like heaven, it was very difficult to get hard in a situation like that but JinWoo could do miracles. He kept going to the point he was deep throating him in no time, almost choking on his hard-on, until he spoke again, “Ride me,” JinWoo shivered at TaeHyun’s low voice, “just look at me,” and so he did. JinWoo sat on top of his cock, both of them exhaled in-between aroused and disgusted because he slid so easily thanks to the blood and cum.

 

“TaeHyun,” his tied hands supported him on the other’s chest as he started a sluggish pace, he hid his face from view behind his long bangs.

 

“Look at me, JinWoo,” he bucked up into him, “look at me,” JinWoo sobbed but gave into him, fixing his eyes on TaeHyun’s.

 

It was then that he noticed the way he was staring at him, TaeHyun didn’t make him feel dirty or used, for a split second he forgot about everything else but him, JinWoo’s heart skipped a beat and he dived in to kiss him on the lips. Their mouths crashed against one another, their ragged breaths synchronized, their bodies moved in sync. TaeHyun’s tongue invaded his cavern, earning a moan from him, so he sucked on it, he unintentionally dragged his nails over his chest leaving red streaks on his skin. JinWoo wanted more, it was so long since he had wanted something so badly as he wanted TaeHyun, even if that meant that they would have to keep on fucking over blood, bruised and abused, it was so wrong yet it felt so good.

 

“TaeHyun!” he whined, he whimpered, he was so close unlike moments before when SeungHoon was pounding into him, “TaeHyun!” he wished that neither of them were tied up, the idea of TaeHyun’s hands all over his body, caressing him, jerking him off, had him arching into him as he came. He didn’t stop because he felt TaeHyun throbbing inside, “Come inside,” he moaned to his ear which made TaeHyun come undone, filling him up, following him in his sick ecstasy.

 

“You both are just as sick as I am,” SeungHoon didn’t let them enjoy the aftermath of their highs, “I’m amazed, TaeHyun, you are some sadist yourself.”

 

“Fuck off, let him go!” JinWoo’s head was resting on TaeHyun’s shoulder, he felt safe, at home, although they could easily be killed right there, “we had a deal!”

 

“I said I’d think about it but now that you insist, yes, he can leave if you give me something in exchange,” SeungHoon petted his hellhound’s head while he rested his on his fist as he stretched his legs in front of him, already dressed up, “what are you going to do?”

 

“I’ll stay,” JinWoo tried to say something but TaeHyun thrust up into him since he hadn’t got out of him, “I’ll stay in his place,” the blonde sobbed and pressed his forehead to his neck.

 

SeungHoon was about to speak when JinWoo gasped in shock, it took two seconds for the hellhound to start baring his teeth at the two on the bed. TaeHyun frowned but then realized that JinWoo’s stigmas weren’t bleeding anymore, “Seriously? That?” he asked to no one in particular, “Is that shit doing something that matters?” JinWoo understood but he couldn’t explain it to TaeHyun yet.

 

“What are you talking about?” TaeHyun was confused, “JinWoo?”

 

“Who do you think you are, Nam TaeHyun? Coming here and stealing my JinWoo?” both of them were shocked by SeungHoon’s murderous look, TaeHyun started to fight his restrains, “I’ll have to kill you now, why did you make me do this, JinWoo-ah?”

 

TaeHyun and JinWoo cuddled as much as they could, about to give up into their fate, when a crazy Mino busted through the door with a chain on his hands, SeungHoon’s attention falling on him and sending Haute after him. SeungYoon entered right behind him and straight towards JinWoo and TaeHyun, he fumbled with JinWoo’s rope but soon managed to undo it while Mino escaped as fast as he could, “SeungYoon! Are you willing to give Mino’s life up for those two?!” SeungHoon’s question got him faltering in his attempt to release TaeHyun, “C’mon, SeungYoonie, I forgave Mino’s life, don’t you remember?”

 

“I won’t let you do the same to them,” he freed TaeHyun after one last tug, “you can do whatever you want to us but not to them,” JinWoo and TaeHyun rushed to get some clothes on.

 

SeungHoon’s eyes turned darker as he walked towards SeungYoon who ran as fast as he could to the balcony. TaeHyun ran after them, leaving JinWoo in the room, before SeungHoon grabbed SeungYoon by the neck, chocking him, “I told you, didn’t I? You were to serve me,” SeungYoon could hear Mino’s screams from inside the hotel, “You hear that? I want that sound to be the sound that haunts you forever in the afterlife,” TaeHyun kicked his side, getting him to let go of a coughing SeungYoon who fell to the ground.

 

“Kid, seriously, stop,” another punched landed on his ribs, breaking a few of them for sure, “you two are useless,” SeungHoon threw TaeHyun against SeungYoon and the two cried out in pain.

 

“Don’t touch them!” JinWoo tightened the rope to his throat, pulling with all the strength he had left, “I don’t care what you think you are, you are going straight to hell, SeungHoon!” he only stopped when something cracked and SeungHoon couldn’t breathe anymore before he pushed him off the ledge as he panted out.

 

JinWoo turned to the bruised SeungYoon and TaeHyun then blacked out.

 

_“Last thing I remember,  
_

_I was running for the door._

_I had to find the passage back,_

_t_ _o the place I was before._

_"Relax," said the night man.”_

**October, 2017.**

JinWoo covered his eyes with his hand, the sunset was hitting him right in the face (it was strong although he was wearing shades) as the landscape passed by fast out of the car window, he was sure they were close because he could feel the goosebumps on his arms. The scars on his body were long gone but the memories remained after a year away from that place, still he found himself coming back to it.

 

A lot of things had changed since though.

 

“You ready?” TaeHyun’s took off his own shades once he found a spot in the parking lot, “We can still escape.”

 

“I’m sure SeungYoon would kill you,” JinWoo winked at him as he stepped out of the car, “and put those on again, we don’t want anyone recognizing you.”

 

TaeHyun’s hand found his, intertwining their fingers, while they made their way into the hotel. People poured from everywhere, noise filled the place, the façade had a modern style and JinWoo felt somehow at home again. Arrebol was still the same yet so different. Some kids ran around their legs just as a deep voice called their names, “Tae-ah, Jinu-ah!” Mino moved around to reach them.

 

“Mino-ah!” JinWoo let go of TaeHyun’s hand in order to hug the tanned man tightly, “How you’ve been? We missed you,” he gave the now co-manager of the hotel a peck on the cheek.

 

“Well, we’ve been kind of busy here but we saw your comeback a few months ago,” TaeHyun side hugged Mino too, “I’m glad you were able to come.”

 

“We still own this place so yeah, that’s the least we could do.” TaeHyun shrugged as they walked to the kitchen where they could hear SeungYoon barking orders at his sous-chefs, “Besides, you know, you have Polly and Rei here if you need anything.”

 

JinWoo practically ran to SeungYoon, pushing the working chefs aside, and jumped into his arms, hugging the life out of him, “SeungYoonie!” the now brown haired rubbed his cheek on his shoulder, “I missed you!”

 

“I missed you too, hyung,” the main cook fixed the shorter’s hair, “you look handsome as always,” TaeHyun discreetly pulled JinWoo away by the waist, making SeungYoon giggle a little at his possessiveness.

 

“Speaking of the devil,” Mino picked up TaeHyun’s Russian Blue that had just entered through the back door, “here she is, hi Polly,” the cat easily leaned into his caress before he pawed towards his real owner who cradled her.

 

“Where’s Rei?” JinWoo asked while he scratched Polly’s ear.

 

“In your room, I believe,” Mino left a kiss on SeungYoon’s temple, “C’mon, I’ll get JinHwan to take you to your room.”

 

They nodded and bid SeungYoon goodbye as they left the kitchen, going back to the front desk where a petite blonde was kindly smiling at a family that was just checking in for the next three days. TaeHyun raised his eyebrows, thinking that maybe having a short blonde as their desk boy was some kind of inside joke between Mino and SeungYoon, but he didn’t say a word until Mino called him, “JinHwannie, these are our special guests I told you about, could you accompany them to their suite? I’ll cover for you.”

 

“Of course, Mino-sshi, right away,” JinHwan’s eyes avoided TaeHyun as soon as took off his sunglasses while he could easily smile at JinWoo, who greeted him kindly, “please, follow me.”

 

“So, JinHwan, how long have you been working here?” JinWoo decided it was the right time to get rid of his own sunglasses when TaeHyun tried to strike up a conversation with the front desk boy.

 

“Oh, for a bit over six months now,” the petite blonde blushed but gave the taller a shy smile.

 

“I see,” JinWoo crossed his arms over his chest but said nothing, “well, if you ever need something, don’t hesitate to ask, I know the owner himself.”

 

“O-Oh,” he stuttered and tripped a bit when they reached their suite, “yeah, thanks, we’re here. I’ll get my co-worker to bring your luggage in a moment. I hope you enjoy your stay,” he bowed, gave the keycard to TaeHyun in a rush and made a nervous bee-line back to his job.

 

TaeHyun opened the door for JinWoo who only huffed in his face before he entered, going straight for the bed where he sat down to take off his shoes when his cat jumped off from the balcony railing to greet his owner, “He was cute,” the older just shook his head, “What?”

 

“You like blondes,” TaeHyun laughed rather loudly at the statement, “I’m not a blonde anymore, why do you still like me?” his sarcasm almost ripped another set of laugher from the other.

 

“Because…” JinWoo felt each step getting nearer, like a hunter taunting his prey, waiting for his feline to leave, “I gave my life for yours,” TaeHyun unhurriedly crawled on top of JinWoo before grabbed his wrists to expose his palms; right in the center of them, there were two almost invisible scars that crossed them of which he had the twin pair in his own hands.

 

“You know, one day that argument is going to become invalid,” JinWoo escaped from his grasp to wrap his arms around his neck, “what are you going to do then?”

 

“I’ll just have to save your life again,” it was JinWoo’s turn to smile, pulling him down to press their lips together.

 

Kim JinWoo was finally able to check-out of that hotel after years of imprisonment but, no matter how free he was now, he would never leave the place where he met Nam TaeHyun.

 

_"We are programmed to receive._

_you can check-out any time you like,_

_but you can never leave!”_

**Author's Note:**

> I do believe I have to mention a few people that helped me (I dragged along) to finish this. A sincere thanks to:  
> My love with who I spent long nights talking about the plot.  
> My beta who put up with my last minute request.  
> My friends who read it before anyone to tell me their honest thoughts of it.


End file.
